Surprise Strictly finalist signs up for Celebrity Gladiators after impressing BBC bosses with their ‘humility & humour’

HE surprised everybody with his dance ability when he was on Strictly Come Dancing last year, now he’s facing a bigger challenge by signing for Celebrity Gladiators. Influencer George Clarke is joining the line-up of the BBC One spin-off show which starts filming next week along with the main show, at Sheffield Arena. George Clarke was the only male celebrity to make it to the final of Strictly last year Credit: PA Influencer George has now signed for Celebrity Gladiators Credit: BBC He was the only male celebrity to make it to the final of Strictly last year and, along with Amber Davies, was a runner up with footballer Karen Carney triumphing A TV insider said: “BBC bosses were impressed with the fact that, although he didn’t come from a dance background, George really threw himself into everything – and he did it with humility and humour. Sign up for the TV newsletter Thank you! “They’re all qualities he’ll need when he clashes with the Gladiators. “But he knows it’s as much about physical strength and agility as anything else, and it’s fair to say he’ll be going up against some blokes who will dwarf him.” I exclusively revealed earlier this week how the first name to sign for Celebrity Gladiators, set to air later this year, was Big Brother host AJ Odudu. She was also a sensation when she was on Strictly in 2021, and also made it to the final before having to pull out due to injury. But George’s achievement in reaching the final seemed all the more remarkable because, despite having online fame with youngsters, he was a virtual unknown with most of the traditional Strictly. Yet he won them over with his charm and determination, and George seems to have done the same with TV execs since he left the contest. Most read in TV Only last week he was also appearing on the sofa of Celebrity Gogglebox with his longtime pal, and fellow content creator, Max Balegde. If only they could could BOTH go on Celebrity Gladiators…there’s always next year, Max. BEAR THE SURVIVOR… THANKS TO WAITROSE Bear Grylls chats to a Waitrose delivery driver from his custom-built boat Credit: SWNS Bear took a short trip to the mainland to collect his delivery from the superstore Credit: SWNS BEAR GRYLLS is pushing the boat out for his Waitrose delivery – literally. The intrepid explorer, who lives on a private island off north Wales, even makes getting his weekly food a great adventure, as these exclusive pictures show. He was spotted hopping in his ­custom-built boat for a short trip to the mainland to collect his delivery from the superstore. The Celebrity Bear Hunt host picked up bags of groceries from one of the retailer’s vans parked on the shore near Abersoch Harbour Beach. Not what you expect to see when you’re enjoying a quiet stroll along the coastline. Wearing a lifejacket and shorts, adventurer Bear then used his amphibious vehicle to sail home. Maybe Waitrose should change its name to Waitrows? KILL-BID SPY TO OPEN UP The story of the Salisbury poisonings will be told in a new film Credit: Alamy THE shocking story of the Salisbury poisonings will be told in a new film. In 2018, Novichok was used in an assassination bid on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia. They were found collapsed on a bench in the Wiltshire town. Local Dawn Sturgess thought the poison from the attack was perfume and died after spraying it on her wrist. The Salisbury Poisonings: A Spy Next Door reconstructs Skripal’s life as a spy in his own words. Former Prime Minister Theresa May, MI6 chiefs, counter-terrorism officers and ex-KGB agents feature, as do local people. Charlie Rowley, who unwittingly gave the Novichok to Dawn, also speaks. Watch on Sky on August 4. OLIVIA ATTWOOD’s Price Of Perfection has been promoted to a prime-time slot on ITV2. The Love Islander turned documentary-maker will return with a third series of her take on surgery and tweakments. The six-parter will air at 9pm, an hour earlier than previously, from August 4. ROBOCOP PRIMED FOR DUTY RoboCop is set to get a modern-day TV reboot Credit: Alamy CULT sci-fi movie RoboCop is to get a modern-day TV reboot as a Prime Video series. The original 1987 film saw Peter Weller as the titular half-man, half-machine law-enforcement officer and was followed by two sequels and TV shows. The upcoming eight-parter is billed as “unmistakably new” for our tech-driven world. The official tagline teases: “A giant tech conglomerate convinces the city to place a powerful robot on its police force – a robot implanted with the consciousness of a beloved, fallen officer.” Executive producer James Wan said: “What [director] Paul Verhoeven created in 1987 was decades ahead of its time, and its questions about technology, identity, and who corporations really serve have only grown more urgent.” IAIN STIRLING has enlisted a crew of celeb pals for series two of his Roast The Internet comedy show. Among them are AJ Odudu, Danny Beard, Joel Dommett and Jonathan Ross. They will take aim at their online gripes from September 7 on Comedy Central. MIRTH A SECOND TRY, AL Alan Carr says he should have been booted off Last One Laughing earlier Credit: PA ALAN CARR’s uncontrollable giggles got him booted off Last One Laughing. But the comedian has confessed he should have left Prime Video’s second series earlier than he did. Hosted by Jimmy Carr, the show sees ten comics competing to make each other laugh – with the winner the last one to stay straight-faced. Alan revealed bosses bent the rules for him, allowing him to start again after he chuckled. “Last One Laughing, f*** me, that was torture,” Alan said on his Bottoms Up! podcast. Likening his giggles to a tic, Alan explained: “On Last One Laughing, I maybe shouldn’t say this, but that noise went, I [laughed], and they said, ‘We’ll let you have that one Alan. Let’s start again’.” He told the story to comic Joanne McNally, who will be hoping to emulate Alan’s success on the first season of The Celebrity Traitors, which he won, when she appears on the BBC show’s second series. Comment now